Ingenuity keeps Wareham retail shop on top

WAREHAM, Mass. — When a business experiences a certain degree of success, it would be easy to keep things "status quo" — especially in this troubled economy.

But the owners of Old Company Store aren't about to abandon the ingenuity and creativity that has made their store a bit of an enchanted forest for weary shoppers for the past 15 years.

By Pamela BerardBulletin correspondent

WAREHAM, Mass. — When a business experiences a certain degree of success, it would be easy to keep things "status quo" — especially in this troubled economy.

But the owners of Old Company Store aren't about to abandon the ingenuity and creativity that has made their store a bit of an enchanted forest for weary shoppers for the past 15 years.

Shari Aussant, who opened the store 15 years ago and has run it with her sister, Cindi Assad von Kahle, and their mother, Sandra Assad, for most of that time, just reinvented the historic structure, which offers a combination of upscale and nostalgic gifts.

Never a "country store kind of girl," Aussant had kept the store looking like an upscale gift shop. Each of the seven different rooms that comprise the store (some original to the building, which is listed with the National Register of Historic Places), have a different feel, offering everything from pickles in a barrel to fine jewelry and original artwork.

The new look is retro — harkening back to a simpler time — the 50s.

"What we did was, we kept the products, but if you were a tourist in the 1950s, that's the kind of feel you'd have if you walked into a shop," Aussant said. "The hospitality is there, that old-style hospitality"¦we always had that, but it's just amplified."

The new look includes a 1950s diner table, an iJuke wafting nostalgic tunes into the store, Burma-Shave signs, and an old Coca-Cola cooler that offers ice-cold Coke in a classic bottle. Some of their items and photos are tongue-in-cheek and sassy, and will "make you smile," said Aussant.

Because of the economy, "people are getting depressed and unhappy," said von Kahle. "Yet, when you walk into our store, you really don't feel that. People usually walk in and say it feels so good in there. Immediately, people relax."

"Because (50s nostalgia) is familiar to a pretty wide age group, I think everyone has really been receptive to it," von Kahle said. "It kind of sets us apart too. We don't want to look like everybody else."

The store is big on hospitality — offering complimentary steaming cups of coffee, and frequent samplings and cooking demonstrations of gourmet treats sold at the store.

There's always something happening at Old Company Store — from book signings to pajama parties, to prom parties and an upcoming sock hop. Many events benefit a local charity.

Aussant bought her first antique at age 15 (a barber's chair), and the store is filled with some of her finds, many of which she painted for the new decor.

"I had so many antiques I had collected, and somehow they found their way outside the store, so I'm bringing them back in," Aussant said. "We painted them and it was so much fun, kind of bringing everything back to life."

"I wanted guests to feel nostalgic," Aussant said. "I wanted people to walk in and say, 'These were better times. I feel better being here.'"

Already, "everybody tells me when they are having a bad day they come in the store, just to feel at home," Aussant said.

The seven rooms have themes which include jewelry, gourmet foods, gift baskets, candles, books and a gallery room. You can buy everything from a birthday gift for a favorite friend, to a wedding treasure.

"Everything has a story," Aussant said.

The same is true of the building, which is steeped in history. The Tremont Nail Factory had owned the building since the mid-1800s. "They used to use it to create wooden barrels and put the nails in them and ship them across the country," Aussant said. They then turned the building into a factory store for employees, and it became a more touristy gift shop around 1969. About 15 years ago, the factory was under new ownership and the gift shop was going to be closed.

Aussant had studied gallery management in New York City. "I had tried my hand at working at the galleries in New York," she said. "It just wasn't me."

The then 23-year-old was looking for a career with heart, when her father, John, took her on a tour of some antique buildings because she had always liked architecture. They walked into the nail factory store, "and I fell in love."

"There's a heart and soul to that building. I can't describe it. You just walk in and you instantly feel something," she said.

At first, they leased the building (getting three free months rent, Aussant said, because the owner was worried the store might not survive). It was hard work.

"We didn't take pay for two to three years," said Aussant, who waited tables on the side.

But, "it was worth it," she said.

The owners pride themselves on offering original gifts. "If someone does carry something we carry, we pretty much stop carrying it," Aussant said. "I want people to come into our store and say, 'Oh you can't find this anywhere else.'"

Similarly, they try to respect other local stores, and not carry the same items another store may carry.

A self-described risk-taker, Aussant is not afraid to gamble on a new look, or a new product line.

In this tough economy, the owners are focusing on staying unique, having fun, giving good customer service, and offering affordable treasures.

"Most people are trying to have higher-end products so they can make a little more money," Aussant said. "We feel we need to have more things that people can afford, that has heart to it."

Von Kahle says the family enjoys staying a bit ahead of the curve. "Sometime stores, if something works they stay with it and don't actually move into something else. They might be afraid to try something outside the box," she said.

But Old Company Store has a different philosophy. "You don't know if you'll like it until you try it," von Kahle said.

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